This past August, the four of us flew over to France. The first nearly two weeks served as our semi-annual family trip to the continent. My wife and younger son, Sebastian, flew back to Houston, but my older son and I continued on. Starting in Lyon, France (where he is studying for the semester), we traveled to Como, Italy, Lugano, Switzerland, and Zermatt, Switzerland before returning to Lyon.

While my older son, Nathan, is not much of a wine drinker (or so he claims), I was not going to stop my consumption when it was just the two of us. So here are a few of those wines that “we” tried that last week of the trip.

2021 Roberto Anselmi San Vincenzo Bianco Veneto IGT, Italy: Retail 18€, Restaurant 39 CHF. 70% Garganega, 15% Sauvignon Blanc, 15% Chardonnay. It was our first night in Lugano, a town I had not been to in literally decades. I loved it back then and my first impressions this second go-around certainly confirmed my long-held adoration. For dinner, I found a little hole in the wall called La Tinèra, which specialized in local dishes, but the only local wines they had were all red, so I opted for this wine with which I also have a long history (I met Lisa Anselmo several times in New York back when we were living on the East Coast). No sooner did my son and I sit down, the rain started falling, so we scurried inside and downstairs into a little sweat box of a dining room. The menu itself, the actual physical menu, was a mess, as it was littered with absolutely horrific pictures of the food. I usually shy away from restaurants that include photos in the menu but I had a good vibe about this place, and it was late enough that we had very few other options. I actually opted for the dish that had the absolute worst picture in the menu. By a lot. I am not quite sure why, but the server, a guy who had to be 93, assured me it was good. He was spot on. The melon and prosciutto was fantastic and my Luganiga al cartoccio, essentially a local sausage with risotto, the dish with the horrendous photo, was incredible. So much so that I considered going back to the same restaurant the following night, sweating my brains out in the cellar, AND ordering the same damned thing. It was that good. The wine? Oh yeah. The Anselmi. One of my favorite Italian producers and this is their flagship wine. Straw, on the verge of yellow with mostly tree fruit, pear and apricot but also some lemon and kiwi, interestingly. The palate is pretty forward and powerful with a quick shot of fruit followed by an intense acidity. The wine finishes well, lingering long enough so as to ponder my lunches with Lisa Anselmi, however many years ago. Excellent. 91 Points.

Believe it or not, but my photo of this fantastic dish is waaaaay better than the one in the menu.

NV Charles de Cazanove Champagne Brut Classic, France: Retail 29€. 50% Pinot Noir, 25% Pinot Meunier, 25% Chardonnay. It was the last night of our family vacation and we were in Lyon, where my older son would be spending a semester abroad and it was a Sunday. That meant just about everything was closed. Wine shops, grocery stores, and even most restaurants were shuttered. Somewhere, somehow my wife found this bottle; I didn’t ask where or how, I just met it (and her, natch) with open arms and a thirsty gaze. Given the predominance of black grapes, one would expect a hearty wine, full of body and heft. And that is what we have. Sure, it is not the most complex champagne I have tried (even on this trip), but it is tasty and certainly hit the spot watching the end of Season Three of Jack Ryan. Very Good. 89 Points.

2022 Bruno Giacosa Roero Arneis, Piedmont, Italy: Retail 25€, Restaurant 38€. My son and I just arrived in Como, on the banks of the eponymous lake after a week in France and Switzerland. The six-hour train from Lyon was long and essentially devoid of any decent food so we were hungry. I found a quaint place not far from the lake and ordered this as I am a fan of the grape and region (does Arneis exist outside of Piedmont? Good question). We started with some Iberico ham. Holy mother of Jesus. Then Linguine Carbonara—the first of the trip that rivals my own, and then a caprese. Whoa. The wine? Fantastic. Light to medium straw in the glass with lemon, yes, but also green apple and some earth, curiously. The palate is tart, even bracing, with a good balance of fruit and minerality. The fruit never quite catches up to the acid, but this is a delight. Excellent. 92 Points.

A theme for the trip was certainly Carbonara, as it is Nathan’s all-time favorite dish that I make. He kept saying mine is better, but I am pretty sure he was just being nice.

2020 Donnafugata Etna Sul Vulcano Etna Bianco, Sicily, Italy: Retail 24€, Restaurant in Como 49€. 100% Carricante. I would have to go back and check, but I am pretty sure that I have written more about the wines from Donnafugata than any other Italian producer, and it is likely not close. I fell in love with the wines and the people of Donnafugata on two separate visits to Sicily, an island where I hope to soon return. So even though I was nowhere near Sicily, when I saw this on a menu in Como, I did not hesitate (although the restaurant price was a bit high for Europe, but I digress). Carricante might not only be my favorite Sicilian white variety, it may be my favorite in all of Italy (but that will require decades of further research, naturally). Brilliant straw color in the glass with bright fruit: Asian pear, green apple, and lemon rind. There is also a distinct mineral note that carries over to the palate which is quite tart initially followed by fruit and that mineral aspect returns to dominate the lingering finish. Excellent. 92 Points.

One night I broke with our traditional carbonara (there was not one on the menu) and went with a Bolognese.

2019 Antoine & Rachel Olivier Santenay Les Coteaux Sous la Roche, France: 65€ at a restaurant in Lyon. 100% Chardonnay. Back in the day, Santenay was one of my go-to appellations in Burgundy as it offered tasty (albeit somewhat rustic) and affordable wines. Not so much anymore as even Santenay wines have shot through the stratosphere in price. I saw this on the wine list for a “mere” $70, and since it was my birthday, I went for it. Straw, near yellow in the glass with alluring aromas of lemon curd, minerality, and just a touch of oak. So far so good. The palate is fruity, but also rich, with a zingy tartness that brings it all together nicely. Sadly, I do not drink much white Burgundy anymore due to both the ridiculous prices and the premature oxidation issues, but when I do, and find a good one, I am reminded of how magical it can be. Outstanding. 93 Points.

2022 Tamborini Merlot Terre di Gudo, Ticino, Switzerland: Retail 20 CHF, Restaurant 45 CHF. It was our last night in Lugano, a city I had not visited in at least 20 years. I really wanted to take my college junior son here since he is spending his first semester in Lyon, France. I hoped to spark his nascent wanderlust with a town that not many Americans know but is a true jewel. Whether or not that happens (fingers crossed) remains to be seen but one thing was certain: on our last night here, I was going to have a bottle of white Merlot. Ticino, where Lugano is situated in Switzerland, produces almost exclusively red wine, and almost all of it is Merlot. There is some Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, apparently, but recently white Merlot has surfaced. A bit of color, maybe yellow with a slight red tint in the glass? And the nose is a mélange of apple and red fruit (or is that my mind playing tricks?) along with a hint of tropical (pineapple). The palate is balanced, with nice fruit, a peppy zing, and an above average finish. I perseverated over this wine for a while, wondering if it appealed to me more due to its novelty or its merits. I landed on the latter. Excellent. 90 Points.

White Merlot anyone?